The Four Leaf Clover!
by AimTarget
Summary: Four girls are randomly teleported to the Hunterverse. What will happen to them as they try to make sense of their new lies? New bonds? New commitments? New friends? New enemies? Love? GonxOC, KurapikaxOC, KilluaxOC, LeorioxOC. Rated T just to be safe.
1. We're in the Hunter x Hunter world!

A note from the author:

Hey everyone. It's Aim! I'm rewriting this story to make it more interesting and I had these brainstorm of ideas! Please read and review! I love you all!

* * *

"That was so much fun!" I said as the four of us came out the hall of mirrors. "Where to next?"

My twelve year old cousin let out a moan, "Can we just sit around for a while?"

"What Lial," I teased, "tired already?"

"My feet hurt." Lial had such little stamina that it was surprising. We had been only to three exhibits and she was already complaining of fatigue.

"C'mon!" I pulled her arm, "I want to go to the fun house and see the clowns!"

"If you wanted to see a clown, all you'd have to do was to look at a mirror." Faith was twirling the car key with her index finger. I stuck my tongue out at her. Not very mature of a fifteen year old is it? But then, Faith was only a year older than me and we already lived on different planets.

"I agree with Faith. I don't see how any of this is amusing." Mariel, my eleven year old cousin said. Mariel was too smart for her own age and for her own good. She was considered geek of the century and didn't have any friends. Personally speaking, I didn't like her much, but hey, she's family.

"Then why'd you come?" Going to see the carnival was my idea and all three of my cousins agreed instantly.

"I suppose this is better than staying at home." Mariel answered without meeting my gaze. True that. We were having a family reunion, which is a more normal way of saying that the parents were sucking up to Grandpa. The problem was that everyone (my parents included) needed money and Gramps hadn't made a will yet. My parents even made an attempt to make me coax the old man. I couldn't care less. Besides, Gramps didn't look like he'd kick the bucket any time in the near future. Nevertheless, it was a cold war back at home. The adults spoke in innuendos and narrowed their eyes distrustfully at each other. The tension in the air was a visible monster, threatening to grab at the throats of the innocent bystanders that we were. It was then that I saw a flyer for a carnival in the evening and suggested we go. My cousins agreed.

"Well then, let's go!" I grabbed onto the arms of my youngest cousins and pulled them along. A grumbling Faith followed.

On the way to the fun house, I was distracted by a man dressed in a trench coat. There was a short, plump old lady in a black dress next to him.

"Hey there, children," The lady called, "Do you want to see something interesting?"

"Oh sure!" I pulled two of my younger cousins with me as I walked up to her.

"Come here." The lady motioned us to follow as she led us inside a strange balloon shaped, tent-like thing. I could have sworn it wasn't there before.

"Was that there before?" Faith whispered.

"I have a strange feeling about this..." Lial mumbled.

The man followed us. The inside of the tent was bare, except for an object in the center that looked like a prop from a science fiction movie. It was a huge spherical object, painted in silver, with a door and a window. There were several antennae on top of it.  
The lady opened the door and asked us to go in. Lial was standing in the front, blocking the entrance. She wouldn't go in, so I had to push her. Inside, there were five chairs arranged in a circular way. Feeling strange and awkward all of a sudden, we sat on four of the chairs and looked around at each others' faces. The trench coat man came in with four helmets with light bulbs on them. Hesitating, we put them on. He then asked us to put on the seat belts. We complied.

"What are we even doing here?" Faith asked the moment the man was gone.

"I have no idea!" I honestly didn't.

"At least we'll see something interesting." Mariel spoke up.

"Guys, I don't think we should be doing this..." Lial made a move to take of the helmet.

"Don't do that." The lady's face could be seen at the window. "This is part of an experiment. I want you to close your eyes and try to be calm."

"Exactly what is all this?" Mari asked.

"Don't interrupt me. Alright now, there are some rules. Since the four of you are four different individuals, it might not be possible for me to put all four of you in the same place, even though, I could send you to the same world."

Send us to the same world? I looked at my cousins. They all had confused expressions on their faces.

"Your current predicament will not change. If all goes well, the experiment will be a success. If it fails, well then... I don't know what will happen. I will be keeping a close eye on you four."

The door was then shut. The window was shut and the lights went off.

"Okay," Faith whispered loud enough for all of us to hear, "I'm driving us home the moment we get out of here." The three of us agreed with her.

And all of a sudden, a jerking moment was felt. I clutched onto Mari's hand (She was sitting to my right. The chair on my left was empty.) I could hear Lial scream.

Then, it felt as if though we were moving. What was going on? The only one of us who wasn't screaming was Mari. But she was digging her nails into my skin, so hard that it bled.

The window was suddenly filled with stars and for a moment, I thought we were in space. The stars whizzed past us and melted into a stream of whites and yellows. And then, an explosion was felt. It originated from the center and the five chairs began to move in five different directions. I screamed my lungs out when I felt Mari's hand being taken away from mine. I frantically tried to remove the seat belt, but I couldn't. I scratched in vain at the metallic buckle till I broke a nail and still.

It was out of fear that I passed out, still sitting in my chair...

Morning found me in a standing position. I looked around. It was a totally unfamiliar sensation. There were stone walls all around me. There was some kind of sky light in the ceiling and light fell on a spot on the floor. There was a large thick stone door in front of me.

I tried to move and immediately regretted it. I was tied onto some kind of wooden board at my neck, my wrist and my thighs. My restraints were made of barbed wire. Hot tears streamed down my face. I jerked my head and noticed strands of red hair frame my face. Perplexed, I looked down to see that I was wearing a loose white rag and there was blood all over it.

"So, this is where you are." The old woman appeared out of nowhere.

"Who are you?! Where am I?! What have you done to me?!"

"I didn't do anything." The lady said. Then she paused to do some kind of narration, "You're name is Aspen, right?"

I was too scared to nod.

Without waiting for a response, the lady continued, "I will answer your first question first. I'm a traveler. I travel between different dimensions. Before I die, I want to teach others how to travel between the worlds as well. So far, all my test subjects died before making it to another dimension, but you four are really good. You've responded fairly well to the treatment."

"So this is some kind of sick experiment?! I want to go home! I want to go home right now!"

My pleas fell on deaf ears as the woman continued, "To answer the second question, you are on Kuttle Island. You are the member of a very well reputed family. Your name hasn't changed, but your appearance has. How odd. I'd like to study this further..."

My brain didn't properly register what she said, "Please send me home. I want to go home." I couldn't hold back the tears, from fear, from pain and from helplessness.

"I'm afraid I can't."

"What do you mean you can't?!" I was now yelling.

"The transporter disintegrated on traveling. I can't send you home without it."

"There must be a way!"

"There is," The lady smiled, "You can learn to travel through dimensions like me. But that will take years. I will teach you."

"I want to go home now!" I automatically struggled against the restraints and let a loud scream as the barbed wire cut deeper. I started sobbing loudly.

"The time for me to leave has come." The lady disappeared.

I stared wide eyed as the door opened and a woman who reminded me of my mother walked in. She certainly didn't look like my mother. But there was something about her...

She had flaming red hair and incredibly pale skin. She was dressed in a plain white half sleeved shirt over a black full sleeve one, white pants and white converse shoes. In her hand was a tray of food. But what I noticed most about her was her eyes. The pupils were huge and the irises were rings of different shades of light blue. There was a crazy insane look in them.

She stood in front of me and smiled, "Aspen my love, have you come to your senses?"

I stared bewildered at her.

"Look, I brought you some food. If you promise not to behave like that again, I will release you."

I had no idea what the woman was talking about. But I was starving and the woman had what appeared to be bread and stew in her hands. I nodded.

Her lifeless eyes lit up and she immediately undid my restraints. Then she gave me the food. After I ate, she bandaged my wounds.

"Okay, so let's go!" The woman sang happily, "We have a busy day ahead of us."

During the whole time, I hadn't said a word. I was completely dazed. She looked at me, "You're awfully quiet. Are you mad at mommy, honey? Mommy's sorry." She looked at the ground, "You're always giving me so much trouble. Hurting you hurts me and everyone else. Why can't you understand that?"

For the first time I noticed that there were scars on her wrists and on her neck.

When she turned her back to me to leave, I saw the symbol of an inward spiraling snake, with a cross at the center of the spiral, sewn onto the back of her shirt.

"You can rest up, if you'd like." The lady said, "But I expect you to be at your station by eleven." And with a sigh, she left.

I blinked twice. The old lady reappeared.

"What the hell was that?!" I demanded.

"That was your mother. She had punished you three weeks ago for killing a patient."

"What?!"

"I'll fill you in on the details. You are the member of a family of reputed psychiatrists. This is an institution for the mentally ill. This place is also your home."

I had managed to calm down, "So my parents own a mental hospital?"

"Yes."

I yelled out loud, "Well, I don't want to be a part of this crazy messed up world. Take me home NOW!" I screamed at the last part.

"I've already told you I can't. Now, you make the best out this situation while I find out where your sisters are."

My eyes widened at that, "Are my cousins here too?"

"They were your cousins?"

"Are they here?!"

"Well, not here, but somewhere in this world."

I could have screamed. I gave her a death glare, cursing her to hell in my mind.

"That is a dangerous ability," she looked away, "I suggest you don't use it on anyone other than the patients here."

I was puzzled by the statement. A buzzing sound interrupted our thinking. The lady pulled out what looked like a cell phone out of a pocket sewn into her dress.

"Well, it looks like I've found one of your cousins. Bye!"

"Wait-" But she was already gone.

I winced as I made each step, my muscles aching, as I walked out the door. The narrow stone hallways were empty. As I walked further, I noticed steps. Great.

With great difficulty, I made my way around three agonizing flights of stairs, painfully slow. In my mind, I was cursing the old lady. If only she could feel the pain I was in.

Kuttle Island? Where the hell is Kuttle Island? In which continent, in what country, on what PLANET is Kuttle island?! I was going to beat her into a bloody pulp until she agrees to take me back home.

Eventually, I reached a door. Finally, the stairs were over. I opened the door.

Downstairs was in a turmoil. There were several people dressed similar to my new mother running about. The room was pleasantly furnished with leather couches, a well polished table and potted plants. There was a painting of a woman embracing a child on the wall and a water dispenser.

As I looked, I noticed that all the people of the room had eyes like my mothers'. I wondered if it was a family thing. Oh, then I'd have those eyes too! I had to admit, that'd be cool.

One of the people stopped running. As the person approached me, I couldn't tell if it was a girl or a boy.

"You're here," he/she said, "There's something wrong with some of the patients. I think it's the epidemic. Seven have died already and several others have developed advanced stage of the illness." He/she passed me a clipboard and said, "I've been running double shifts, so I'd really appreciate it if you could take care of these people here."

I blinked twice and stared at the clipboard. My eyes widened and jaws dropped. The symbols! I knew them! More importantly, I could read them!

We were in the Hunter X Hunter world!


	2. Let's take the exam!

**Aspen's POV**

So, we were in the Hunter X Hunter world. I thought for a moment - okay, so I have red hair and multicolored eyes; I come from a family of reputed psychiatrists who live in a mental hospital; I killed a patient for which I was punished for three weeks by being tied up to a wooden plank with barbed wire. Yep, all this would definitely be possible in the Hunter X Hunter world.

The boy/girl was still there. He/she looked at my astonished face and said, "I know. It's strange, isn't it?"

I lost my train of thought as I said, "Huh?"

"The deaths are all suicides. All of them killed themselves!"

"Oh, right. It is strange." I hoped I sounded convincing.

"You seem strange," he/she blushed as he/she ran a hand through his/her black hair, "Does it hurt?"

"Does what hurt?"

He/She pointed at the bandages.

"A little." Which was my way of saying 'It stung like hell!'

"I have a few painkillers. Wait here." I waited. As I looked around, I saw that several people staring at me.

"For heaven's sake," A blonde man said, "Aspen, put on some clean clothes!" He then looked at a girl with long black hair. She sighed, "I'll get her uniform."

Then, the boy/girl came back, "I have the medicine. Come outside please."

We went outside and sat on the stone steps over looking a beautiful garden. There were several normal eyed people there. I guessed they were patients, because they were chained up.

The stone building looked like a fort. It was picturesque, with vines growing on the wall and everything. A little far away from it was a huge brick building, with a chimney. I couldn't but help admire the view.

"Ouch!" The boy/girl had injected a needle into my upper arm.

"There. That should do." He/she then looked at me, "I suppose you'll change into a uniform. I don't want you traumatizing any of the patients."

"Hn..." I was thinking of something else entirely. If we really were in the Hunter X Hunter world, I wanted to meet the whole cast! I felt my eyes light up as I decided - I have to take the Hunter Exam! Then I pouted. I also had to find my three cousins - which I could do if I had a Hunter's license! Two birds with one bullet! I then thought - what will I tell everyone here? If they ask me what my reason for wanting to become a Hunter? Both 'I want to meet the cast of anime characters' and 'I want to find my cousins who came into this world with me' sounded unbelievable.

The boy/girl was ranting on and on about the epidemic, called Suicide's Syndrome that comes and goes. No one knows how it spreads, but the ones who are affected by it are locked away. They all show the same symptoms - severe apathy, lack of apetite and hallucinations about death. Within a week of developing these symptoms, they'd all commit suicides. The lengths to which they go to kill themselves was frightening. One guy even banged his head against the wall until he died. Usually, when all the affected people die, the disease is stopped. After a while, it comes again. Mental illnesses are not spreadable diseases, but this one is. There's no way it is genetic, as these patients are unrelated. No one had discovered a cure for it, yet and the rate of-

Wait a second- that was it! No one had discovered a cure! I was going to become a hunter to look for the cure. Perfect! I have a reason! All that's left is-

"Hey!" A tall man with brown hair and the eyes looked in our direction, "What are you girls doing slacking off?!"

I looked at the person sitting next to me. Oh, so she was a girl. Now all I needed was her name.

She dragged me to my feet. Surprisingly, the pain was gone. "We're leaving!" She shouted back and pulled me away.

The girl with the long black hair had returned, "Here you go Aspen." She passed me a uniform. As she held it out, I noticed there were scars on her wrist and on her neck...

"Change and come on," my new tomboy friend said, "we have a shift to run!"

* * *

**Faith's POV**

I stormed back into my room. A blonde haired woman, who had this strange resemblance to my mother, followed. She was dressed in a designer white dress and jewellery that looked like it could feed the whole of our country for a year.

"But Faith!"

"No!" I turned to face her, "I am not marrying that guy!"

"We need you to, honey. It's for the safety of our whole city."

Angrily, I ran a hand through my disheveled, frizzy blonde hair. "What part of 'no' don't you understand, woman?"

"Don't you dare talk to me like that!" She sighed, "You are really a nuisance sometimes. There is no changing your mind?"

"Of course not!"

"Well then, you can just stay here till you've made up your mind!"

The woman left, slamming the door behind her. I then heard the turning of a key in the lock. I plopped on the bed, still dressed in my one shoulder red dress.

Earlier, I panicked for a really long time, after I found myself on this huge, king size bed with twenty pillows. The old lady from the carnival appeared before me and told me that I was in this world now. She told me that I lived in Bulde City and was the daughter of a famous mafia boss and that I had to marry a man from a drug dealing family to prevent an impending war between the families. I had just come after a meeting with the man. You can imagine my surprise when I found out that my suitor was a fifty year old perverted son of a female dog who kept trying to touch me at inappropriate places. There's no way in hell I'm marrying that guy!

I rolled over on my stomach. The lady also said that my cousins were here and that she'd already spoken to Aspen. But she wouldn't tell me where she was. I had to find them, at any cost and then get the hell out of this place!

I picked up a magazine sitting on a table beside my bed. I flipped through it, surprised I can read the strange looking alphabet. Then, my eye caught an article. It was about the upcoming Hunter Exam. Now, where have I heard that before?

My jaw dropped in recognition. This is from that anime that Aspen was crazy about.

I immediately walked over to my computer to do some research.

Hunters... I could definitely become one! Then, I could find my cousins.

But... There's no way my mafioso father and his puppet wife would let me go. They wanted me to marry that guy as soon as possible. Yeah, right. I'll just have to sneak out.

There was a way to apply for the exam online. I didn't waste any time. I applied right away and got an instant response. Awesome! Now, all I'd have to do, would be to sneak out and go and take it.

* * *

**Mariel's POV**

I hated this place! Everywhere I went were religious nuts who liked to believe that the gods were behind everything. I felt like banging my head against a wall.

I woke up in a labyrinth of some sort. The walls were covered in some kind of algae that glowed - brilliant shades of blue, green and yellow. Even the houses and living quarters were covered in this bright algae. It was calming and peaceful to be there. The old woman, whom we'd had the misfortune of encountering at the carnival, appeared saying that she had accomplished the impossibility that was traveling between the dimensions. She also told me that I was a child prodigy from a clan of priests. I was the youngest high-priestess to come from the family.  
I almost felt like laughing from the irony. A priestess! I was seated under a tree with glowing heart shaped leaves, of which the trunk, like everything else, was covered in the glowing moss. There was a fresh water pond in front of me. Inside the pond were several fish which also exhibited bio-luminescence (which is the phenomenon by which living things glow).

Being the curious person I was I used the long green robe I had to wear as the symbol of my status as a fishing net and caught a fish. I wanted to observe exactly the mechanism of it's glow. The fish, as I had expected, died when I took it out of the water and I was severely reprimanded for unnecessarily killing a living thing by my father, who in this world, was a priest. When I asked him about the glowing animals, he told me that it was a gift from the gods. The gods!

I was to be meditating under the tree. But I was lost in thought. The old lady had told me about my cousins. She had already discovered the locations of Aspen and Faith. I had to find them. But sadly, there was no technology anywhere here to make use of. There must be a way I can access information.

I stood up as a woman - my priestess mother, who was a brunette like myself in this world came up to me saying that there was a stranger at the entrance. I had noticed that our community was highly respected and we welcomed visitors who were injured or in need of religious help. I followed her.

The stranger in question was bruised and bleeding. I knelt before him and watched in wonder as my father healed his wounds just by touching them. That was interesting...

But, my interest was cut short as the man introduced himself. He said he was a hunter.

"What are Hunters?" I had asked.

"You don't know?!" And he started with his explanation. I could feel a smile form on my face. A hunter was exactly what I needed.

"How do I become one?" I asked after I found him alone, when everyone else had gone. He told me that I had to take the Hunter Exam. There seemed to be no level of qualification to take the test. That was perfect. I would become a hunter. It was decided.

* * *

**Lial's POV**

I sat in my room, thinking about what the old lady had said. First, we were in a different world. The lady seemed to know where Aspen, Faith and Mariel were, but she wouldn't tell. I wondered why. Then there was the fact that my new identity was that of a member of a prestigious family of 'analysts,' whatever that meant. We are such a hidden family that our existance is only rumored. We lived in a hole in the mountains and hid our presence from the rest of the world. The third thing was that my physical appearance had changed. I had looked in a mirror. My hair was black of shoulder lenght and my eyes were green. My skin was lighter than before. I had always grown my hair long, so to have it cut short felt... strange.

My father in this world was still alive and my mother was a friendly woman. That makes me happy. But I needed to find my cousins. Where could they be? Why wouldn't the old lady tell me?

I explored every bit of the mansion I was in and met all my family members. This seems like a nice place, except I wasn't allowed to go out. I tried sneaking out, only to be sent back into my room.

I lay down on the floor and closed my eyes, thinking hard. Where are my cousins? Somehow, I got the feeling that if I thought hard enough, I'll get the answer.

Where are my cousins? What are they doing now? How can I find them? Just then, the darkness of the back of my eyelids became clouded with some kind of vision. Several words were floating in my mind. I could hear voices and see certain vague images - A mansion in the city, a pretty stone house, glowing walls... What does it all mean? I was confused. But, the feeling was familiar...

One particular thing stuck out more than anything else.

The ... Hunter... Exam...

The Hunter Exam? The term was familiar, but I couldn't remember exactly what it was. But was that where they were going? In that case, that would be the best place to meet up with them. I should take it. The solution was simple. Now the only task remained was to convince my parents that I wanted to go. That would not be easy.

* * *

**Aspen's POV**

"Absolutely not!" My mother put forth the final word.

"But mom!"

"No means no!"

That was the end of that. I was sitting on the stone steps, gazing at infinity. That was when my dark haired friend, whose name I found out was Ophel, came and sat by me.

"I heard that you wanted to take the hunter exam."

"Hn?"

"I think it was very noble of you."

I gave her a piercing look, "Do you think I could sneak away?"

"Sneak away?" She looked taken aback for a moment, "I won't say it's impossible..."

"Then, you're saying I could?!"

"Maybe... with help."

"Will you help me?"

"Does this really mean that much to you?"

"It does! It means more than the world!"

"Okay." She sighed.

"Thanks!" I grasped her hands in mine. "You're my best friend." I really do owe her. How come such nice people don't exist in real life?

She blushed and pulled her hand away. It was then that I noticed the similar scars on her wrist. When I looked close, there were scars on her neck too.

Thinking back on it now, I should have taken that as a sign...


	3. Gon and Kurapika

A note from the author,

Hey there, readers! I just wanted to let you know that I've rewritten the first two chapters. Please read, enjoy and review!

* * *

Some random character stuff:

What they're wearing:

Aspen: The uniform at the Krystle Institute for the Mentally ill.

Faith: A white button up shirt, a plaid red skirt and combat boots.

Mariel: A purple long kimono-like robe that the priestesses of her community wear, complete with glow-in-the-dark flower patterns and open-toed shoes.

Lial: A dark blue shirt, black shorts and ankle boots.

Their badge numbers:

Lial: 297

Aspen: 298

Faith: 299

Mariel: 300 (Aim: Hope these numbers aren't already taken up by some other significant characters...)

* * *

**Aspen's POV**

I couldn't hold back my excitement. The four of us had made it to the restaurant at Zaban city. We were now seated in a room with four chairs, that served as an elevator. The room was moving downwards.

I had to rub my eyes several times when I saw my three cousins at the navigator's house. There were a lot of other people there, but I could pick those three out.

The navigators had told us that in order for us to get to the exam, we'd have to pass one of their tests, which was finding our way through a long maze that actually had three levels. Of course, the normal people couldn't make it. That's where Lial helped us though. She said she could scan the terrain and find a way out. The way she led us to the exit was pretty cool. Even the navigators didn't expect four little girls to pass.

"I'm so psyched out!" I said.

"Of course you are," Mari sighed in irritation, "This is the world of your favorite anime."

"See? Anime is good for you!"

Mariel opened her mouth to say something but was interrupted by Faith, "Before this turns into a fight," She eyed us both angrily, "I'd like to propose that if, by any chance, we were to meet the protagonists of this anime, we won't tell them about us."

Lial's eyes widened, "She's coming?"

"Who?" We asked.

"Me of course," The old lady had appeared in a corner. "I have come to tell you that there are rules."

"More of your rules?" I was getting ready to punch her.

"Yes. This one is very simple. You are not allowed to get too close to any of the people of this word, other than those you have identified as family."

"So we can't talk to them?!" Talk about killjoy.

"I didn't say you couldn't. Just keep the conversation to minimum."

"Oh, the elevator has stopped." Lial remarked. The doors opened. When I turned to look, the woman was gone.

"Next time she appears," Mariel said, "I would like to ask her name."

"We're here!" I beamed as I looked at all those hunter applicants. They glared at us with hostile curiosity. I entered the tunnel and my cousins followed. Everything looked so real, it was hard to tell that this was all an anime.

"Here, take a number." The guy with the bean shaped head appeared. We obliged.

"Hey there girls, you must be new here." I knew even without having to look at him. Tonpa.

I met his eyes with a smile, "Yes! You can tell?" Even though I knew the answer.

"Sure," he said, "I can recognize a new face. After all, I took this exam thirty five times."

"Thirty five?!" Mock surprise. I had always been a great actress.

"Yep I'm sort of a veteran. My name is Tonpa."

I smiled sweetly as I introduced myself and my companions. I wanted this guy to go away, so I put on my sweetest fake smile and looked at my friends who were looking at the man with mixed expressions. I said, "Boy, am I tired! What about you guys?"

Tonpa took up on my line just as I had expected, "Since you're tired, why not have a drink?" He got cans of orange juice from his side bag. I took one. My cousins took one each as well. Now all I had to do was pretend to taste the laxative. Then I can send him away.

"Guys, you shouldn't drink this." Lial gave her can back to the man, "It's been tampered with."

She knows? I thought she didn't watch the anime... but then again, she was an analyst. What was an analyst?

"W-what?!" Tonpa broke into a sweat.

"It's no use, , I can tell."

"Y-you can tell?!"

Faith stepped up, "Why don't you just leave before you make me angry?"

After he left, she said, "Geez, what an a "

"Mind your language." Mariel reprimanded.

* * *

**Faith's POV**

We were wiling away our time while Aspen was observing the door, waiting for the protagonists to arrive. I looked around and felt a little uneasy at the way some of the men were staring at me.

And finally, the long wait was over as three people walked in.

I didn't know much of the anime, but I could recognize them in first sigh.

"It's them! It's them!" Aspen chanted, "The one with the spikey hair is Gon, the blonde is Kurapika and the old man is Leorio. Let's go meet them!"

At that point, Mariel whacked the red head's head with a long wooden staff with a glowing ball on one end.

"What the hell was that for?! Where did you get that stick?!" The red head was massaging her head.

"First of all, the lady said not to over engage the characters. As for the stick, I summoned it."

"You can use Nen?!"

"What is Nen?"

"You don't know what Nen is?!"

"No." As an afterthought she said, "My father told me that it is a God given ability of mine. He said that I'm the only person in our whole community who can."

Aspen broke into laughter, "You're a conjuror. You can use Nen!"

"What is wrong with you?"

At that moment, an ear piercing scream was heard. I panicked, "What was that?!"

"Who is that guy?" Lial was trembling, "He's so much stronger than everyone else here. I can sense it!"

"That's Hisoka." Aspen was serious all of a sudden, "He just made a person's arms disappear."

"Disappear?" Mariel said, "Does he use this 'Nen'?"

"Yes."

A ringing sound interrupted our discussion. A man, who Aspen had explained was the examiner, asked us to follow him.

We were first walking and then running. The man, Satotz, confirmed Aspen's explanation. He was leading us to the site of the second exam.

While we were running, the guy named Kurapika caught with Aspen.

"That symbol," he looked at her, "Are you from the Krystle institute?"

"Yep!" She responded. Then, as an afterthought, she said, "Do you know about it?"

"I've heard that it is an institution for the most high profile mental patients."

"That's true. I ran away from there."

"Y-you ran away?!" The man named Leorio asked.

"Relax, I'm not a patient. I'm one of the..." she thought for a moment, "staff."

"Judging from your eyes," Kurapika said, "you must be a member of the Krystle family."

"I am." She quickly added, "My name is Aspen. What's yours?"

"Kurapika." He then introduced his friend.

Aspen took this moment to introduce me as well. She looked around but couldn't find Mariel or Lial anywhere around. That was strange. Where did they go?

I looked over to Aspen and Kurapika. They were striking up a nice conversation. I didn't like where that was going. Didn't the old lady specifically say that we were not to engage them?

Whatever.

* * *

**Mariel's POV:**

Another moment with that stupid redhead and I would die. I looked to the side at the girl running beside me. At least Lial had more sense.

"Hey look," Lial said, "Isn't that the main character?" She pointed at the spikey haired boy. He was running a little behind us.

"Is it?"

"Yes. I'm getting a really good vibe from him. Should we introduce ourselves?"

"To what end? Especially since the woman had told us not to get too involved with them."

"Yes, but he seems like a really nice person. I want to talk to him."

"Perhaps he is."

At that moment, the boy caught up to us, "Are you talking about me?"

"Did you hear our whole conversation?" I asked. But Lial didn't give him a chance to respond. She chimed in, "Hi! I'm Lial. This is my friend Mariel."

"I'm Gon!"

Lial said something to him and he responded. I couldn't make out what they were saying, so I ran up to his other side to hear his end of the conversation. We were now running on either side of the boy.

"Is that a fishing pole?" Curse my insatiable curiosity, "May I see it?"

"Sure." He passed it to me. I took it from him. It seemed ordinary enough.

"Why do you have a fishing pole?"

"It used to belong to my father."

"Your father?"

"Yes. I want to become a hunter to find my father."

"That is a noble cause." I returned the fishing pole to him.

"Mariel, why do you want to be a hunter?"

I thought for a moment. I did have a reason.

I sighed as I handed him a small bottle of the luminescent algae.

"It's pretty," he examined it, "but what is it?"

"It's a sample of a bryophyte that exhibits bio-luminescence."

"Eh?" The expression on his face was that of one person who did not understand a word that I said.

I sighed yet again, "It's a plant that glows."

"Whoa, no way! It glows?!"

"Yes. That's why I desire to be a hunter. I want to find out exactly why it glows and what makes it glow. Not just that, I want to know a lot more things."

I took the bottle (my specimen jar, as I liked to call it) back from him. The boy had a look of what I presumed was admiration on his face. I got a strange feeling from watching him smile.

"Hey, if you promise not to tell anyone, I'll tell you a secret." I found myself opening up, as if though I trusted him.

"M-Mari, you really shouldn't..." Lial's voice was ignored.

"I promise!" Gon seemed eager to know.

"There is a rumor," I was carefully choosing words that weren't beyond an average child's vocabulary, "that there is a way to travel between the worlds. I wish to find it."

"Really?" The boy beamed at me. I suppose I could understand why he was the protagonist. There was something about him that I liked. Eventhough, I spoke using hard words about things he didn't understand, he didn't push me away or just decide that I was some sort of freak of nature that was too bright for her own good.

"Mariel!" Lial spoke up, "I think you've said enough."

"No," I sighed, "I've said too much."

* * *

**Aspen's POV**

Here I was discussing some random things about Kuttle Island with Kurapika. With Kurapika!

I'd already died a few times in my head. This guy was awesome! Not to mention a total genius.

By the way, did I mention he was awesome?

"I really am a certified psychiatrist," I said as a vague image popped in my mind. It was one of Ophel and I reading out of a huge volume on psychiatry. How strange. I could remember such a thing.

"That certainly is interesting." The blonde smiled.

I could die right there. Keeping up a neutral expression was near-impossible. I managed a low chuckle.

"Psst!" Faith called. I moved closer.

"How much longer do we have to run?" She was whispering.

"I don't remember exactly... a few hours?"

"Hours?!" Her eyes widened, "How's that humanly possible?!"

"I don't really know." I had tried to keep my voice low, hoping the blonde Kurta wouldn't hear me. I then turned to smile at him. Keeping this secret was going to be incredibly difficult.


	4. Leorio and Killua

Hey guys! I'm finding it really hard to switch between POVs so maybe, I'll have to do something about it; chapters are becoming lengthy since I have to include everyone in it, so I might skip some parts. Also, I'm writing this purely out of memory, so please forgive me if there are any mistakes.

And, to those who were wondering about the pairings, it's going to be:

Aspen x Kurapika (duh!)

Mariel x Gon (That is so weird, but I'll make it happen)

Lial x Killua (I think they make a nice couple, but it's going to be tough)

Faith x Leorio (I feel so brave for putting this up. Leorio is a great guy. He's so underrated, he deserves love. These two will be, I have to admit, the most natural pairing of all.)

So, on with the story!

* * *

**Faith's POV**

"Hey kid! Wait up!"

I flinched as I realized how close Leorio was to me. Man, that guy sure was loud. I had noticed the pale boy with the white hair move up past us on a skateboard. I was expecting it, since Aspen had mentioned it before.

"Huh?" He turned to us with a bored expression.

"You should show the exam some respect!"

"What do you mean?"

"You're using a skateboard! That's cheating!"

"No it isn't." Gon ran up to him.

"He has a point." I mumbled, "I mean, the examiner didn't specify how we had to follow him."

"Whose side are you guys on?!"

"I'm not picking sides. Neither is Gon, right?" I looked over to the boy in green to see that he had absorbed himself with his new friend.

As the boy, whose name I couldn't remember, started running on foot, Mariel and Lial ran over to our side.

"Hey Leorio," I distracted the fuming man for a moment, "These two are my friends. The brunette is Mariel. The shy one is Lial."

"I'm not shy." Lial hated being called shy, but she was. That was part of her charm, actually.

"There you guys are," Aspen said, introducing them to Kurapika. She was fan-girling over him. That much was obvious. I mean, she was good at acting, but I know her well enough to see through it. Personally, I didn't see what the fuss was all about. Guys are all the same. Assholes, all of them.

Aspen moved closer to me and whispered, "Hey, I just thought of something."

"What?" I whispered back.

"We could seriously mess up the plot here."

"You realize that now?!" I said that loud enough for five pairs of eyes to fall on me. Dropping my voice again to a whisper, and ignoring those eyes, I said, "I knew that from the beginning!"

Aspen gave a nervous laugh.

"So now what?" I asked.

"I don't really know..."

"Guys," Lial stopped running, "This is as far as I can go. Please become hunters."

"Oh, okay. See ya later."

I caught the red head by the collar of her shirt, "We're not leaving her behind!" I pulled her close to me. Kurapika was observing the scene. Even he seemed to have more sense than her.

"What can we do?" Mari spoke up, "I don't see how we can get her to the finish line assuming that we have to run another twenty miles."

Aspen became serious for a moment, "I'll carry her on my back."

"Really?" I didn't expect her to say that.

"Yeah, I'm pretty athletic." She walked over to the girl and got her onto her back, despite the younger girl's protests.

"We're all set to go."

We continued on our way back.

**Aspen's POV:** (After running for an hour, or so)

I was observing the blonde Kurta till I realized that I was openly staring at him.

God! I want to die! But the old lady... I can't just forget about what she said, right?

Kurapika must have felt my eyes on him, because he smiled at me.

Screw the old hag! I'm so totally going to make him mine!

"You're name is Aspen, right?" I looked at Gon who was suddenly running next to me.

"Yeah?" I eyed his silver haired friend, who eyed me back. No, wait, he wasn't looking at me; he was eyeing the girl on my back.

"She looks heavy." The boy commented, "I'll carry her for you."

"Are you sure about that? She's really, really, heavy."

"That's alright. She's my friend."

Aww... He's so sweet. And I wanted this weight off me so bad. I bent low untill he could transfer the protesting girl onto his back. Then, I watched as Gon took off, quite effortlessly, reminding me again of how great he was.

Now back to Kurapika...

**Lial's POV**

There is something so wrong about my situation. Not because Gon was carrying me, but because of Killua. I know he's one of the main characters, but he just screams danger. I tried to get the green clad boy to put me down, but he wouldn't. After a while, I gave up.

I could see Faith a little far a way from me. She looked fine.

Leorio was closer. He looked like he'd pass out. But, I suppose he's not that strong either.

Mariel was with us. She wasn't talking.

Leorio slowed down and looked like he was about to give up. He was on the ground, panting.

"Hey, are you okay?" Faith asked.

"I can't," he said between breaths, "You guys go on without me."

"We're not doing that!" The blonde was at a loss this time. I was light, so Gon could carry me. Leorio was a lot taller and weighed a lot more too.

"Just leave him be. Let's go on ahead." Killua said.

"Wait." Gon said. We waited. Then, all of a sudden, the man broke into a speedy dash, declaring that he'd do whatever it took to become a hunter, leaving behind his suitcase. Gon used his fishing rod, in a really cool way to get the suitcase back.

"That looks cool. I want to try that." Killua commented.

"I want to try your skateboard too." The boy replied.

The boys lapsed into casual conversation. I suddenly felt a change in my internal balance - that's what I like to call it - "There are stairs up ahead and- the exit!"

"Exit? Is it near?" The boy carrying me asked.

"No, It's still far away. But I can sense it."

"What do you mean you can sense it?" Killua asked.

"It's kind of -um-" How do I explain 'Nen?' "a gut feeling..."

"That's cool!" Gon said. Killua, however, didn't look too convinced. I wonder what is going to happen next.


	5. Chapter 4 Part 2

Hey! I found a way to write without having to change POVs.

This chapter is actually an extension of the previous chapter. Forgive me if it was short:)

* * *

I was thrilled. After listening to Kurapika's story about how his clan was massacred and listening to Leorio explain why he wanted to become a doctor (and after several flights of stairs) I found myself at the exit of the tunnel. Along with the two aforementioned people, I was one of the last to exit the tunnel. Upon exiting, I found Gon and Killua, along with Lial and Mariel, seated on the side.

"Is this our destination?" Kurapika had asked, to which Gon had replied that it wasn't.

Then, Satotz went into explaining the characteristic features of Numere Wetlands. But, since I knew what was going to happen beforehand, I was feeling bored. And then, the fake examiner came and was killed by Hisoka.

Now that that was over, we had to run again.

At this point, I had decided to stay close to Kurapika and Leorio. Faith was with me.

But, something was seriously bothering me. As I looked around, I could see some unfamiliar faces. I could swear that they were never there before.

There was a guy who was as tall as Leorio, in a frock coat with a walking stick. He was plump and had a thick moustache on his face. There was another guy, who had greenish skin and blue hair. He looked really creepy. There was also this lady with long black hair in a strap-less blue dress. On her shoulder was a skull tattoo.

Who the hell are these people?

"Faith," I moved closer to her and whispered, "I've never seen these people before, in the anime or manga."

"Which people?"

"Them," I gave her the descriptions.

"Are we changing the plot?"

"Looks like it."

"What's going to happen now?"

"I have no clue!" I gave my usual nervous laugh.

Meanwhile:

Lial had told both Gon and Killua that she had recovered from fatigue and was ready to run on her own and now she found herself on Killua's back instead. Why was this happenig to her? She would have asked Mariel to carry her, but the little brunette was around two years younger than her.

And, to make matters worse, there was Hisoka, just a little ways behind them.

"I'm feeling a little uneasy." Lial said, observing the red haired man through the corner of her eye.

"I know," was Killua's response, "Gon, we should probably run ahead."

"Are you concerned about Hisoka?" Mariel broke her silence for the first time in five hours.

"That guy's on a killing spree. I can smell it in the air." The brunette and the albino spoke more or less to each other for the first time.

Gon sniffed the air. "I don't smell anything."

"We should stay away from him," Lial suggested, "you can put me down now." The boys wouldn't agree to it. Lial began to wonder exactly why they were carrying her around in the first place.

Back to where I was:

"Guys!" We heard Gon's voice through the thick mist, "Killua says we should run ahead!"

Leorio yelled even louder, "You idiot! If we could run any faster, we would!"

Faith whispered, "It's Hisoka isn't it?"

"Yep!" I had an air of morbid optimism. I knew that if we stayed close to Leorio and Kurapika, we'd run in to Hisoka. I know it sounds stupid, but I want to meet him!

"Don't worry about us," Kurapika shouted in the general direction of Gon's voice, "You guys go on ahead."

Again, to where Lial was.

The four had been running (well, technically, Lial was on Killua's back) for some time and thanks to Lial's Nen, they were able to avoid running into any of the creatures in the swamp.

Gon kept worrying about Leorio and Kurapika, and Mariel once expressed her concerns for Faith and myself.

"They're going to be fine." Lial reasured him. But even as she said that, she felt incredibly uneasy.

"I can hear screams all around us." Gon said.

"Don't listen." Mariel's voice was cold.

"She has a point," Lial agreed, "Oh, there's something ahead of us. Let's go around it."

The four were now separated from the rest of the contestants.

"This is tiresome," Mari said, "This fog is inpenetrable. Visibility is approaching zero."

"It's alright, I don't need eyes." Lial said, "Even without that, I can tell we're going the right way."

Gon spoke up, "You're a really powerful person, right?"

"What makes you say that?"

"I don't know. Instinct, I guess."

"Gon, I can't even run this distance." Lial said. Why did he think she was powerful? Wait, so if he felt that way, did Killua feel that way too? Was that why he was keeping a close eye on her? She suddenly felt sick.

After a few more minutes of running, she realized that Gon was falling behind. Then, quite abruptly, he started running in a completely different direction.

"Gon!" Lial called. Her ride stopped to look at the retreating figure of the green-clad boy.

"I'm going to see of Leorio and Kurapika are okay!"

"But that's where Hisoka is!" Her words were lost.

The silent brunette looked at her for a moment. "I shall follow him." She took after the boy.

"Wait-" Lial was cut off as Killua put her down. She tried to make a run for it, but the assassin held her left hand in a strong grip.

"Let them go. There's nothing we can do about it."

"But-"

The boy's grip on her hand tightened as he pulled her close, "Now tell me, who exactly are you? What is that power?"

Lial's eyes widened. The blue ones she was staring into were devoid of any kind of innosence. They were dead serious.

Now, while this was happening, I'll tell you what we were doing.

After running into those huge turtle monsters, the much awaited (at least by me) event was about to occur.

In a clearing, we observed Hisoka kill a whole group of men with one card. We stood paralysed in our positions. Even I was frozen with fear.

The man started casually in our direction.

"When I give the signal," Kurapika said, "the four of us should run in four different ways."

We gave our approval with silence. The wait was agonizing as the man came closer.

"Now!" Kurapika had said and we bolted in four directions.

But, I knew Leorio would go back. Should I let the anime run it's plot? No way!

I ran back to where Leorio was already, shirtless, with that tie around his neck, looking ridiculous. Now, since I was there, the plot had changed. Hisoka punched Leorio in the face, sending his unconscious body to the ground.

Then he turned to me. "Do you want to play?"

At this point, I was feeling what Gon had felt.

"What have you done with my friend?" Apt line for an anime heroine?

The man smirked, his amber eyes filled with blood lust. He made cards appear in his hand. It was then that I realized that I was being unbelievably stupid.

With one flick of a wrist, the cards were in my direction. I thought I was a goner, but my body had been compelled my some unmoving force to move on its own. I had dodged the attack. That made me wonder if I had had any training before. How cool!

My self rejoicing was cut short when I suddenly felt him behind me. I turned to face him. He held me by the neck, like he did with Gon. However, I noticed he was looking at the ground.

"How interesting," the man said, his eyes fixed on the ground, "if I look into your eyes, will you hypnotize me?"

Hypnotize? I was dying from lack of breath for my brain to comprehend exactly what was going on.

It was then that the red floater from Gon's fishing rod struck the man in the face. The man turned to face him. I knew Gon was there, but, boy was I surprised to see a very determined looking Mariel with him.

Hisoka released me, just as my head was reeling from lack of oxygen. I was lying on the ground on my back, waiting for feeling to return to my finger tips. When I looked up, I got a peek up Faith's plaid skirt (I am so not going to comment on the color of her underwear) as she stood above me with a gun in her hand. I didn't even notice her come back.

Faith was more surprised than I was. She didn't know what surprised her more- whether the fact that there was a gun in one of the desk drawers in her bedroom back at her home, or the fact that she knew how to use it. She had decided to take it with her, just in case.

"That is not a good idea," I said, sitting up.

Faith knelt down beside me, "Should I just let things run their course?"

"Yeah." I coughed.

I didn't think for a moment that the plot could get any more messed up. But boy, was I proven wrong when Kurapika actually came running back. Faith immediately tucked her gun behind her. He may or may not have seen it.

"Hey, are you alright?" He looked around.

Unconcious Leorio was on the floor, I was still coughing and Hisoka held Gon by his throat. Then, the psychopath looked around. "This is quite the party isn't it?" He released Gon. Then, his eyes went from Faith to me to Kurapika (who had weilded his wooden swords) to Mariel (who had that glowing stick in her hands) back to Gon.

"You lot are certainly interesting."

He then told us not to worry, since Leorio wasn't dead. He had passed the test along with Gon and I. He then picked up Leorio and left us all alone.

Kurapika examined first Gon and then me (he is my prince!), and satisfied that everything was as it should be, we left on our way back. Gon said he was able to track Leorio's collogne. When I asked him about Lial, he said she was with Killua. I was relieved. If she was with him, she'd be safe, right?

Back to Lial and Killua:

"I-I have no i-idea what you're talking about." Lial resented the fact that she wasn't too convincing.

Killua's grip tightened, "You know what I'm talking about. How can you sense things? What is that aura?"

"K-Killua, if you squeeze any harder, you'll break my arm!"

"It's some kind of trick, right? There has to be some trick to it."

"It's not a trick!" The girl sighed. Might as well tell him the truth, or at least, an abridged version. "I come from a really secretive clan. All our members have these abilities. Some of us are really strong. I'm one of the weaker members."

The boy was waiting, as if for her to say more,

"That's it, I swear!" She then added, "Why don't you believe me? I'm on your side! I've been helping you this whole time." Then, in an attempt to change the subject, she said, "The other contestants are that way!"

He relaxed his grip on her, "I'm not entirely satisfied with your explanation." He looked like Mari the time I left her at school and forgot to pick her up. When she finally found her way home, she glared at me. The expression that Killua had on his face was almost identical.

The two then walked in the direction that Lial had mentioned.

Lial decided that when they'd found us, she'd stay by my side, as far away from Killua as possible.


	6. Time to hunt the pigs!

This chapter ended kind of premature. Sorry about that. The thing is, I have a lot of work to do at cram school...

That aside, I'd like to thank a guest who has been sending me a lot of reviews. You have special love from me.

I'm sorry if things are moving slow, but I have a hard time writing about all four of my OCs. It's tough, but I'll do it.

* * *

**Aspen's POV**

The first thing that happened when we reached the site of the Second Phase was that Lial had flung herself on me. Though I knew the introvert to be reserved, she did have emotional outbreaks every now and then.

The white haired assassin didn't seem too keen on seeing me and absorbed himself with his other male friend.

Now, being the huge fangirl I was, I ran over to Kurapika, who had found the injured Leorio. Faith was already there. Gon and Killua joined us.

Just then, a rustling of leaves caught my attention. I stared intently at the bush. A tall figure of a man with puffy black hair was wrapped in a long coat. I could make out his upper torso from behind the bushes.

"It's him!" I whisper-yelled (you know, that thing when you whisper and yell at the same time). Faith saw him too. I recognized him as the old lady's assistant- the trench-coat man.

"Let's go get him!" I said.

"We can't do that! What if someone finds out?"

"You have a point."

"Let's act casual."

The man produced a rolled up piece of paper from inside his jacket. He showed it off to us, before sticking it into the bark of a tree behind him.

"Is he sending us a message?" Faith whispered.

"Looks like it. We'll get it when the Second Phase starts." Then it dawned on me, "Can't anyone else see him?"

"I won't be surprised if no one else can."

At this time, Satotz had given his leave and walked away in his usual strange fashion.

"You know," I said, to no one in particular, "I like that man."

I felt a slight tug on the hem of my shirt. Mariel stood there, looking really awkward.

"Let me guess," I teased, "You're glad I'm okay."

"Well, that is the gist of it." Her expression then hardened, "But, you knew this was going to happen."

I laughed nervously at that.

"Even though you knew what was going to happen, you chose to make such a reckless decision. I'm going to assume that we've altered the original sequence of events greatly."

"Is this true?" Faith was suddenly beside me, "I cannot believe you!"

"Well," I laughed nervously, even more.

Lial appeared opposite to me, "I'm kind of mad at you, Mariel."

"Oh? And what would be your reason?" The four of us were now standing in a circle.

"You left me there with Killua! He asked me so many questions about Nen."

"You didn't answer him, did you?" I asked.

"No. I managed to escape that situation. But, he doesn't trust me. In fact, I think he's keeping an eye on me."

The ridiculousness of the situation made me laugh. The others looked at me in a strange way. I did have this strange way of laughing in awkward situations. But, once, the gate to the Biska park was opened, I managed to calm down. After making sure that no one was looking, I went and got the paper from the tree bark.

I went to the site without reading it. There was Menchi and Buhara and they announced the boar hunt and off the candidates went. The four of us though, we stayed far away from everyone else. We were huddled close together and spoke in low voices, just in case.

"Um," Lial said, "Shouldn't we go get the pigs?"

"Hn...," I fished through the pocket of my pants for the note the man left, "It doesn't really matter. We're supposed to fail."

"I don't understand how that works." Mariel looked at me strangely.

"Menchi is going to fail everyone and then Chairman Netero will come to give us a second chance."

"Chairman?" Faith asked.

"The chairman of the Selection Committee." I unfolded the paper in my hands. The old lady's handwriting was big and loopy.

"It's addressed to all of us." I read out the contents, "To my dear sweet children," I paused to gag, "I have seen what you did back there. I have already warned you not to get too close to the people of this world. Please heed my advice. On a separate note, I managed to find out exactly how the four of you have managed to successfully travel to this world. However, it won't be good news for you." I paused, "And there is no signature."

Faith angrily cursed, "That B!tch!"

"Language," Mariel said halfheartedly.

"I hate this! I want to go home!" Lial was rubbing the part of her left wrist which was now red and swollen.

Was I the only person who was happy here? Then I thought back to my Mom and Dad and instantly began to feel sad. "I want to go home too!"

"Oh!" Lial immediately looked up, "Pigs!"

"What?" In a distance, I could see a heard of pigs stampeding in our direction.

"Run!" I scrambled to my feet, shoving the piece of paper roughly into my pocket.

The four of us ran and quite soon, we found the other candidates. They were running too. Pigs were chasing everyone. I got up on a tree, but when I looked around the girls were no where in sight. I looked around, but I couldn't find them. I hoped they were okay.

**Faith's POV**

After running away from the monstrous beasts, I found myself in some part of this goddamn forest. Wherever I went, there were trees. And they all looked the same. Where were the girls? Where was anybody? Where the hell was I? God! I hate this!

I walked around for a little while until I saw... PIG! It was staring at me, like it was going to eat me. Talk about creepy. Without thinking twice, I pulled out my gun and shot it right between the eyes.

I felt weird after that. Standing in front of the dead pig, my hands won't let go of the trigger. I stood there for a moment, frozen, till my hands began to tremble. What was this feeling?

I could feel beads of perspiration run down my forehead. I wondered how long I'd been standing like that. Soon, my vision got blurry.

I was no longer a woman, but a little child, one with frayed blonde hair, and eyes as dark as the blackest ebony. In my scrawny little hands was a gun. It wasn't just any gun, it had a special meaning. It was white with a skull symbol on it and looked oddly familiar. But where? And why?

In front of me, strewn about the ground was the body of a woman with jet black hair, with a bullet wound on her forehead, her face in a scream that froze in her throat, her eyes, dead with morbid surprise.

There was blood on my pink skirt and on my buckled shoes and where I stood. The woman's body was bathed in it as well. A foreboding sensation etched into my heart. Who was this woman? And more importantly, I dreaded to ask, did I kill her?

Why?

Why? Why? Why?

I would never kill someone. Sure, when I was a kid, I hung out with a pedophile biker gang leader and threatened physical harm on my class mates unless they did everything I asked, but I'd never actually go and do something like that. Not even for all the lunch money in the world!

That wasn't me. And yet it was.

My whole body was caught in some kind of seizure. My muscles went into spasm.

I was not her! But she was me!

Now, kneeling on the ground, I put the gun in front of me and looked at my hands. When I first came into this world, I felt like this body was mine. I never doubted it for a second, but now, looking at my trembling hands, I felt like this body belonged to someone else. I felt like this was not me. I felt like a stranger who was intruding into another person's mind, without her consent. That mad me wonder. Who was the original owner of this body?!

I was come over with this sickening wave of fear. I wanted to run away from myself. But how could I? And where would I go? Where was my other body, my real body, if you could call it that?

More flash backs, reminders, I saw this blonde haired dark angel in various situations, with her real father and real mother, with her friends, within her circle of society. I learnt the things she did, like how to use a gun. I felt the emotions that she did, happiness, sadness, anger, regret, emptiness, hopelessness. I even began to read her thoughts...

I couldn't stop as the trembling grew harder and my whole body pulsed with pain.

What the hell was happening to me?

**Aspen's POV**

"Has anyone seen Faith?" I asked. After Gon had discovered how to defeat the pigs, everyone had killed one.

Everyone said they hadn't.

"I'm going to look for her." Lial and Mariel decided to join me.

"We'll help too!" Gon enthusiastically agreed. Surprisingly, his male friends agreed as well.

Soon, we were out, looking for her. We split up, hoping for more success that way.

"Faith!" I called out several times. No response. Where was she?

Out of all of us, the one who had the most luck (or least, depending on the way you look at it) was Leorio. He was walking around, probably wondering why he was walking around at all, looking for a girl he barely knew. But soon, he found her.

She was lying on the ground, passed out and there were scratch marks on her arms, which, the would-be-doctor guessed were self inflicted. Standing over her unconscious body, he wondered what exactly he should do.

He knelt down and checked her pulse. That seemed fine. Her breathing was normal. That was fine as well. Since she had no other problems, he decided that he should try waking her up. He gently shook the girl by her shoulder.

As if being stirred from years of slumber, she woke with difficulty. She stared the man in the face, confused.

"Ah!" She shrieked, instantly on her feet, "Who are you?!"

"What the-?!" Lerio was taken aback by her sudden reaction, "It's me! Leorio! Geez! What's wrong with you?!"

"I don't know! I was just here a moment and then I passed out." Whatever feeling it was that came over her, was not there now. She broke down into a fit of sobs, leaving the older man in a state of complete unease. (Which guy wouldn't be, if a girl was randomly crying in front of him?)

"H-hey, lady," he said, at the moment, not recalling her name, "you should try calming down."

She knelt down on the ground, crying harder. Great. What the hell was he supposed to do now?

Awkwardly, he decided to retreat, "I'll go get your friends-"

She cut him short, "No, you can't! You can't tell anyone." She didn't want her intimate feelings to be revealed to any of us, especially since I had a reputation for being notoriously insensitive.

"Tell anyone what?"

There was a silence. Tell anyone what? Exactly what was that? How could she explain it to him? How could she explain that to anyone?

She managed to calm herself down. Wiping her face with the sleeves of her shirt, which were torn and bloodied, she said, "Look, I'm fine. I just -" she broke down, explaining everything that happened to her in one stretch. The suit clad man could make no sense of it whatsoever.

"And then, I just passed out." She stopped, expecting some kind of consolation.

"There, there," Leorio knelt down and put a hand on her shoulder, not sure of what else to do.

Faith stopped crying. She rolled up her shirt sleeves and said, "Do you have any bandages?"

"Uh- sure." The man bent down over his suitcase and produced a roll of cotton bandages. Quite dextrously, he applied them on her arms.

"There," he said when he was done, feeling a lot less awkward now, "You're friends are looking for you."

"Right, let's go." The girl quite easily flung the dead pig over her shoulder.

A few minutes later, we were joined by Faith and Leorio.

"Faith!" I cried, hugging her.

"I knew you'd be okay!" Lial said, joining me in the hug.

"We were worried that you were preyed upon by the beasts." Mariel added.

Then, we decided to get our dead pigs and leave to join the second phase.


	7. Phase Two complete!

Sorry for the late update. It's just that I've got tons to study and I'm prepping for a lot of entrance exams...

Anyway, I just want to remind you, all my readers and reviewers, that I love you! So, on with the chapter!

* * *

**Cooking for Menchi**

In about half an hour, we were at our cooking stations.

"Now all we have to do is cook it." I said, regarding the jumbo pig in front of me.

"What's the point in cooking if we're going to fail anyway?" Faith asked.

"We don't want to attract attention," Mariel was already hard at work gutting her pig, "We're not supposed to have any knowledge of the future."

I looked over to Lial who had an insanely happy expression on her face. She was a really good cook. Cooking pork for her will be like a walk in the park.

I let myself get distracted for a moment. Being in the hunterverse is really awesome, but, I miss my family, my friends and even my dog. That was my life. I thought of all the fanfics I had read. Who'd trade everything they loved to be in an anime? I'm insane. My cousins are really stressed out and I've been insensitive to them. To Mariel, her studies are the most important thing. I'm sure Lial misses her mom. Faith was looking forward to spending some time with her divorced father.

I suck as a friend.

I'm the worst friend ever! I wonder if the girls hate me now. I want to cry!

My self lamenting was cut short when Kurapika appeared beside me, "How are you finding this challenge?"

After a pause of four seconds (during which I stared into his awesome face) I said mechanically, "Not good."

The blonde raised his eyebrows. I stared at him for a moment before breaking out of the daze I was in. "I'm the world's worst cook!" I whined.

"Aren't girls supposed to be good at cooking?" Leorio enquired. At that precise moment, the flame on the grill behind me flared up, scaring everyone. As it subsided, a charred mass was left. Faith blinked at it twice before she said, "I think I burned it."

"That answers your question." I told the tall man, "I actually gave a cat diarrhea. And look at Mariel."

The brunette was gently fingering a butcher knife with bloodied hands and a psychotic obsession.

"What's that smell?" Gon came forward, "It smells really good."

"It does, doesn't it?" I turned my head to where Lial was. She was over the stove, making some kind of steak. That smells so good. What if she actually passes? That'll ruin the plot for sure!

"Lial," I walked over to the girl, pulled her closer and whispered in her ears, "You're supposed to fail!"

"I can't help it. I love to cook."

"This smells really good, Lial!" Gon leant over the counter.

"T-thanks." Lial blushed as she looked at the ground. Aww, that is so cute. If I had a camera, I'd click a picture for sure.

Even though I didn't notice it at the time, Mari was glaring at Lial with an unreadable expression on her face.

Okay, so I know I was being cruel, but there was no other way. We had to lose. But I will admit that I enjoyed it. I decided to sabotage her. While she wasn't looking, I added all sorts of weired stuff into the sizzling pan. Mari actually helped me.

After that, each of us went and got rejected by Menchi. Buhara was nice about us though.

But...

"Oh! This is so close to what I expected!" Menchi said as she chewed on Lial's most awesome steak. "You pass! You are the only contestant who passes." Menchi praised Lial.

All around us, people were astonished, though most of them were irritated that a little girl beat them. Gon seemed genuinely happy while Killua's perfect poker face was unreadable.

"I don't understand." Mariel said.

"I know. How did this happen?" I asked.

Lial, whom Menchi was holding close to her, smiled at us. Her eyes held an unsettling darkness that made me gulp.

The gourmet hunters gave us a lecture on how the only one of us who took this challenge seriously was Lial and that because of that, she passed. That was so frustrating. We were supposed to LOSE!

Lial walked up to us. I wanted to yell at her, but the low chuckle that escaped her lips was enough to send chills down my spine.

"Heheheh, did you seriously think I wouldn't notice if the nature of my cooking had changed?"

Mari and I blinked in unison.

"I knew what you were going to do, so I made an extra!" Then she smiled eerily again. Lial was never a person to properly express anger or grief. Once, I had seen her like that before when she made cupcakes for a friend and I sold them on ebay.

Wait a minute! She made an extra and I didn't notice?

Come to think of it, I had never noticed anything before, back at the maze or at the first phase. Was that her Nen? What exactly was it?

My thoughts were interrupted by Chairman Netero arrivivng on the airship. I never really liked that man. He came down and had a chat with Menchi. Then, the two agreed on us going to Mt Split-in-half (or whatever its name was)

Riding on the airship was the coolest experience I'd had so far.

"This is awesome!" My face was plastered to the window next to the one Gon had his face plastered to.

The others didn't share my entusiasm. Faith was observing the bandages on her arm (which I hadn't noticed, since I'm really dense about certain things), Lial was just sitting silently while Mari was pondering the scientific basis of inter dimensional travelling, trying to find a way to track down the old lady.

Anyway, when the airship finally landed and we disembarked, I found myself actually thrilled at the prospect of jumping into the abyss that separated the two mountain-halves. Here, Menchi and the Chairman explained to us exactly what we have to do. Menchi even gace us the demonstration. She made it look so easy.

"Um, Menchi-san," Lial asked the examiner, "Do I have to do this, since I passed the first test anyway?"

"Only if you want to. You've passed the second phase already."

Lial smiled and gave me the 'you hear that?' expression.

Yeah, whatever, I didn't waste a moment in dragging Mari and Faith with me as we jumped down the abyss. We hung on, let go, got an egg and came back right up. The feeling of floating over the draft was like flying. It was amazing!

The dream eggs tasted so awesome. "Do you want some?" I teasingly asked Lial. She frowned at me.

"Here," Faith said, giving her half an egg, "I'm on a diet anyway." Faith was perpetually on a diet, ever since we were in middle school. I was the opposite. I ate like a pig and never gained an ounce of weight.

Now, the second phase was over and we passed. Now next was ,oh, darn it, the Trick Tower.

* * *

**Aboard the airship! Part One**

We boarded the airship and as soon as Chairman Netero had finished his speech, Gon and Killua went to explore the ship. Mariel dragged an exhausted Lial with her, saying she wanted to explore the ship as well (but in her own studious way).

And, for some reason, Faith was not talking to me.

"What's the matter?" I asked, for the umpteenth time.

"Nothing." Faith was mad at me for being insensitive to her feelings. It didn't help that I had not even once enquired if she was alright. Moreover, she was still frazzled from what happened earlier.

"Hey," Leorio said, "We're going to hit the sack."

"Oh," I said, "Let's go then!" I turned to Faith.

"I think I'll go get something to eat." Faith turned her back to me and started to leave.

"Faith?" I called after her. Since she didn't respond, I sighed, "I'll come too."

"No," She turned to face me, "I don't need you! I'll go by myself!"

"Faith," I said, "Whatever it is that you're going through, I want to help you."

"Then leave me alone!" She stormed off, causing quite the scene.

"Will she be alright?" Kurapika enquired.

"That would depend on whether or not there is alcohol on the ship." I said.

"Shouldn't you go after her?"

"What? And risk getting my head chewed off? She's not nice when she's angry. Not that she is when she isn't..."

"She was a little disturbed earlier, when I found her." Leorio spoke up.

"What do you mean?"

"I don't know. I thought she had some kind of flashback or something. She had scratched out her own arms and they were bleeding. I had to bandage them."

"Wait a second," I turned to face the man, surprised that I hadn't noticed the bandages on her arms, "how come you never told me this before?"

"She told me not to tell anyone."

For some reason, my respect for Leorio rose at that moment. He really is a good guy.

At that moment, I had a flash of inspiration. I reached out and held the man's hand, "Will you go after her then?"

"Me? Why me?"

"If she confided in you once, she might do it again." More importantly, if I send Leorio away, I can get to be alone with Kurapika! I'm a genius.

"But I'm tired!"

"Aw, pleeeease! Aren't we friends?"

"She has a point." Kurapika agreed.

"See?" I said. With a little coaxing, I got a grumbling Leorio to go after a bad tempered Faith. I felt sorry for the man, but hey, all's fair in love and war, right?

"We should probably wait for them." Kurapika said as we found an empty room to sleep in.

I felt my heart beat quicken. This is the first time I'd actually been alone with him. And now, we were going to sleep in the same room! I'm so lucky!

Then, all of a sudden, I felt my heart rate become unpredictable. I could hear it in my ears and feel it in my throat. For a moment, I thought I might actually spit it out. My vision went black.

I began to see the stone steps, on which I sat almost every day of my life - wait, my life? What the hell is this? Why is it my life?

There's someone, sitting all by herself. It's Ophel-ia, I think that's her name. She's my... only friend? This is crazy. What the hell is this?

She's hurt, she's injured, because she took the blame for something I did. Aside from the physical pain of being punished, her heart was broken because, I didn't even thank her for what she did. What kind of a b**** am I?

Me? ME?! Why is this me?! This is not me! And yet it is... This is the kind of person I was, and this is the kind of person I am. I haven't changed, even though I've changed worlds. What the hell am I thinking?!

I've always been kind and considerate to my friends.

No, not really, considering the fact that I had left Faith with Leorio so that I can be with Kurapika.

I just realized, that I'm such a total b****!

Even back at home, I've always been a horrible person. I only thought about myself. I never really cared for my family or my friends. I ran away from home. My mom's probably lost without me. She'd be yelled at by dad and then - wait, why am I thinking of my parents from this world? Exactly what is wrong with me?!

When the haze lifted, I was lying on the floor and a concerned Kurapika was bending over me.

"Are you okay?"

"I'm ... fine..." A sudden wave of nausea crept over me. I felt like throwing up.

I pushed aside the Kurta and ran out, down a random set of hallways until I found a bathroom. I went in and threw up in the toilet.

"My, my" a voice spoke as I came out, "Are you okay?" It was the woman with the skull tattoo.

"I thought I heard you vomit." Up close, the lady was quite taller than me. She was well endowed, with an athletic frame. For a moment, I felt awed by her beauty.

"I'm fine, really." I meant the opposite. But, I kind of wanted her to leave me alone.

"Are you airsick?" The lady asked.

"Y-yeah." Not really.

She then ran a hand through my long red hair, making me almost flinch. "Take care of yourself." With that she left. I watched after her, long after she was gone.


End file.
